Topping Cannabis Plants

when to top cannabis

When to Top Cannabis Plants

Whether you grow indoors or outdoors topping your cannabis plants helps to produce a bigger and better yield, which is every grower’s primary goal. The first thing to understand is that topping is an exact cut at the node, and while that sounds easy, the timing of topping is critical. Topping forces the plant to grow laterally rather than vertically, but when to do so depends on soil health, plant health, lighting, size and age of the plant, and the growth goals.

If you are new to cannabis cultivation, topping cannabis plants is a vital step to maximize the overall quality of the yield. It is a tool that helps to control the overall shape of the plant – by redirecting the growing tendency from vertical to lateral.

The effect is that the supporting branches develop a thicker and stronger cola. Topping,  however, is not the only factor that goes into producing quality and sizable yields. Other factors include soil health, watering, and light.

 

Topping Cannabis Plants – When is the Best Time?

All plants have stages to their life cycle. So, whether we are discussing an annual plant or a perennial plant, understanding the plant’s lifecycle is essential, especially if you want to control the results of each stage of growth. The key to managing a plant during each cycle has a lot to do with how much light the plant receives.

The vegetative cycle, for example, can last from two weeks to six months. That is a critical consideration because topping a cannabis plant is a traumatic experience for the plant. Therefore you want to top plants when that plant is at its healthiest – giving it additional energy into changing from growing vertically into growing laterally.

That also means that soil health needs to be ideal as topping increases the growing demands for the plant. The first thing you need to understand about topping is that the plant will need additional nitrogen to fuel the development of additional cola.

Healthy – What does that mean? The short answer here is actively growing. However, understand that plant health has a lot to do with watering cycles, light, and soil. Lush healthy plants require all three of these ingredients to produce optimum yield.

 

The Cannabis Life Cycle

Germination – generally 2-3 days, depending upon species type, mutations, etc. This cycle can also be as short as eight hours if growing conditions are optimum – good soil, proper watering.

Seedling – generally 1-2 weeks (though can be stretched longer).

Vegetative – generally 2-6 weeks, based on pot size.

Read more on tips for growing Cannabis if you’re just getting started.

 

The Vegetative Stage and Topping Marijuana

When to top a cannabis plant is a big question and it does not always have a perfect answer. This is because species vary, growing environments vary, and of course, there could be mutations – planned or accidental. Those factors all weigh in to determine “when” is the best time to top cannabis. However, the topping is also planned, and you manage a lot of what your plants do by controlling soil, water, and light.

You don’t want to top a cannabis plant too soon. The plant must be able to handle the pruning process. A cannabis seedling can range from 1-2 weeks old, and you would not want to top the plant at week three. It would likely not survive, even though at week three, it should be in the vegetative stage of its development.

 

Counting Nodes

A good rule of thumb is to count the nodes. A node is a junction on the stem where branches grow from the main stem, and cannabis plants tend to node in pairs. The spacing between nodes is called the “internode.” The internode is the stem that grows from one node to the next. Indica plants tend to have very short internodes, as these plants are short and squat. Sativa plants, which are taller, have a longer internode.  For topping cannabis, you want to have at least four nodes and preferably six-eight nodes. This is a general rule. Topping at four nodes is riskier than topping at six- to- eight nodes as plant health improves as the plant grows.

 

Lighting

Counting the Nodes is one rule of thumb, but also consider topping when you change the plants light ratio. The shorter the light cycle, the closer the plant moves toward flowering or seeding. You certainly do not want to top a cannabis plant during the flowering stage. By controlling the light, you can extend the vegetative stage of growth. Generally, when the lighting gets to 12 hours of sunlight and 12 hours of darkness, the plant goes into flowering mode, as that signals the plant that the season is changing.

 

What Physically Happens When You Top a Cannabis Plant?

In the vegetative stage, the plant is putting on height and pouring energy into the main stem. When you top a cannabis plant, the energy that it feeds into growth immediately shifts into healing, and the plant goes into recovery mode. Plants have a competitive need for resources,  even though these plants are grown in a controlled environment, you are still dealing with the genetics of wild plants. It is, in short, a battle for sunlight. When you top at the terminal bud, the lower node suddenly has access to light and from that spot emerge additional cola. You have first stopped the upward momentum of the plant which is now forced to grow laterally.

1. The plant’s focus changes from growing a single cola into producing multiple colas. This occurs because the nodes beneath the topping point now have access to plenty of light, especially with indoor growing technology. You can control this through quality soil and additional water – two ingredients that cannabis needs to produce robust cola.

2. The plant immediately goes into a recovery mode. Having the top portion of the terminal bud removed is traumatic. Recovery means growth so to compensate for the loss, the plant begins to grow and as it does, more cola emerges from the node just below the topping point.

 

Considerations When Topping Marijuana Plants

The first thing to look at is plant health. A plant that is not getting enough light might have eight nodes but not be in excellent shape. Plants need to be robust, the main stem needs to be developing and the overall growth of the plant is even.

Soil Health is another consideration. As mentioned, the topping is stressful for the plant which is why:

1) plant health needs to be optimal before topping, and

2) soil health needs to be optimal after topping. The plant will need more nutrients to spur lateral growth. Growing uses energy, so the plant must have access to good soil energy, which in this case is nitrogen.

 

Boosting Plant Growth and Health

You can do yourself and your garden a favor by starting off with good quality soil and providing adequate water throughout the growing cycle. Also, plan each step and understand that the differences among species of cannabis will require different timing for topping.

This is not just indica vs. sativa. The requirements will vary from one strain of cannabis to the next. It is helpful to keep a growing journal so that you can build wisdom as you grow.

Start growing cannabis the easy way

Quality super soil that yields high results with minimal effort.

SHOP NOW

Growing Medium Guide for Cannabis Plants

SoHum Living Soils® simply the best soil for cannabis plants. From the novice grower to professional cultivators who love our living soil as it takes most of the guesswork out of fertilizing and maintaining PH levels for your plants.

From seed to harvest, you only need to water and prune. Let our living soils take care of providing the best nutrients for cannabis plants.

 

What Is Living Soil?

Living soil is the best cannabis soil medium used for indoor or container gardening that contains all of the microbial life that would be found in natural soil.

SoHum Living Soils® produces better results than “non-amended” soils with much less effort expended overall. Plants form a symbiotic relationship with the microscopic life that thrives in the composting earth, and plants grown in SoHum Living Soils® do not require constant feeding with artificial chemicals.

The nutrients for cannabis plants is the best cannabis soil in the market.

 

 

Structure Of Living Soil

Living soil is composed of five important parts working together:

• Minerals-The result of nature breaking down larger rocks into tiny pieces over time. Typically, soil minerals are labeled as sand, silt or clay depending on their particle size
• Water-Water is necessary for sustaining life and is extremely important in living soils to keep plant roots and microorganisms alive
• Air-Beneficial aerobic microorganisms require oxygen for respiration, “exhaling” CO2, which dramatically increases root growth.
• Organic Matter-Decaying plant and animal matter that create nutrients which plants need to survive. When decomposition is complete, this matter is called humus.
• Microorganisms-Bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and nematodes which work to break down organic matter, provide a water network, create carbon dioxide, increase porosity and feed one another to create yet more nutrients.

 

 

What Are Signs Of a Good Living Soil?

• A dark, rich appearance is a good sign of organic material and humus that contains the best nutrients  and soil for growing cannabis
• A loose texture that provides plenty of air exchange and excellent drainage
• “Spongy” enough to hold water without getting muddy

 

Benefits Of Living Soil

• Living soil is less likely to compact and erode, maintaining it’s spongy, airy structure for a long time
• Water moves through it slowly keeping it moist for longer than dead dirt
• Nutrients are retained and are transported to plant roots in the most usable form
• Increased yields
• More complex root and node systems
• Healthier plants
• The soil can be reusable, but may not hold the same nutrients as in the first cycle, however, It can be reused and composted
• Low costs (no need to purchase nutrients, fertilizer or PH stabilizers) It’s all in the mix
• Minimum maintenance
• Very low risk of plant diseases and pests
• No need for toxic chemicals

SoHum Living Soils® has been scientifically designed to provide all of the nutritional requirements of a cannabis plant for its entire life cycle from seed to harvest.

Start growing cannabis the easy way

Quality super soil that yields high results with minimal effort.

SHOP NOW

The Challenges of Growing Cannabis Indoors vs. Outdoors

Cannabis cultivation is one of the oldest farming trends in human history. Many states now have laws on the books allowing individuals to cultivate cannabis crops. New growers will have to decide whether indoor or outdoor cannabis growing is the path they wish to pursue. Finding success with initial crop yield becomes easier when there is an understanding of the challenges presented by both methods.

Indoor Cannabis Growing Challenges

Cultivating cannabis crops indoors allows growers to shield their product from the outside world while maintaining full control of the environment. That control makes farmers fully responsible for everything related to their cannabis plants. The grower assumes responsibility for adding needed elements to the environment and making sure nothing harmful intrudes into the indoor space.

Proper Set-Up

The first thing indoor farmers need to think about is how they are going to house their plants. The size of the initial set-up does not matter. New growers may want to think carefully about going too large too fast. Starting with a small plot allows room to experiment with the methods used for cultivation.

Farmers need to make sure that the space they start with has room for equipment like ducts, fans, and other items required to keep the environment optimal for cannabis farming. Many new growers underestimate how large their plants will get and do not leave enough room for everything. They may also fail to do enough to block out light during needed dark periods. That can end up disrupting a cannabis plant’s growth cycle and cause the creation of male flowers.

Battling Root Rot

Many growers use deep water culture as their indoor cannabis growing system. While using this method can promote faster growth, farmers need to be careful about monitoring the roots of their plants. Failing to change out the water in the reservoir regularly can lead to root rot and end up ruining the entire crop. Consider using living soil in your cultivation

Getting Your Soil Mixture Right

Finding the best soil for an indoor growth system is an essential part of establishing a crop. It is an easy process to pick up and is more forgiving of human errors like going too heavy on nutrients.

However, farmers need to be careful not to allow the soil to get overly dry. They may also not realize the importance of doing pH checks on the water fed into the soil. 

Outdoor Cannabis Growing Challenges

Growing cannabis outdoors allows nature to assist in providing cannabis plants with much-needed nutrients in the soil. The trade-off for that is the control given up by farmers who must be prepared to continually adapt to environmental changes.

Soil Preparation

Building up a quality base soil is key to getting a successful outdoor cannabis crop established. Many growers find it tempting to use Miracle Grow or other similar products. Plants end up getting deprived of much-needed nitrogen during vegetation and end up getting too much during the flowering period.

Cannabis growers should also be careful about overwatering their crops. Many make the mistake of failing to check the pH or may cycle in nutrients too frequently or unnecessarily.

Dealing With Pests

Outdoor cannabis plants are more susceptible to infestation from pests like caterpillars, spider mites, and grasshoppers. There is also the threat of fungus flies consuming your root system. Birds can drop in and eat new seeds before they have a chance to become established. Farmers who do end up with a flowering crop must then deal with animals like deer who may want to snack on the plants.

Surviving the Weather

Growing cannabis plants outdoors means placing a crop entirely at the mercy of mother nature. Dry weather, rainstorms, and other conditions can end up wiping out an entire field, costing farmers all the time, money, and effort put in up to that point.

Challenges for Both Methods

While indoor and outdoor cannabis cultivation each have unique problems, there are some issues farmers will run into using either method.

Complying With Regulations

Remember, while the laws in a state may make cannabis growing legal, doing so remains illegal per the federal government. Farmers also need to make sure their crop setup complies with local and state laws established around cannabis growing. New growers who fail to do their homework could end up having their entire crop confiscated and face some severe fines depending on where they live.

Controlling Odor

Some strains of cannabis can produce a very pungent odor into the air. That scent may not be something appreciated by everyone living in the area. Farmers can get into trouble if they live in a town or city with strict regulation around controlling the odor from cannabis cultivation. Growers need to have reserves on hand to purchase filtering systems or other devices meant to control the smell.

Establishing Solid Operating Standards

It is essential for growers to set down and follow standards to follow on cannabis crop cultivation. Many new farmers do not bother to schedule and document when they perform specific tasks like watering and nutrient cycling. That causes them to get thrown off-track and do either too much or too little to contribute to the viability of their cannabis crop. 

Get Expert Help With Your Soil

Are you having some trouble finding the right soil for your cannabis farm? SoHum Living Soil® takes a lot of the guesswork out of maintaining soil for indoor and outdoor cannabis growers. Call today at (866) 308-0750 to discuss how we can help you achieve your desired cannabis crop results.

What is the Best Soil for Cannabis, Weed, and Marijuana?

What is the Best Soil for Cannabis, Weed, and Marijuana?

Choosing the Best Soil for Growing Cannabis

Everyone has heard about people just growing cannabis in their backyard or out in the woods. Yet as with any crop, growing cannabis in regular soil really is not ideal. If you have ever grown fruits or vegetables, you know that different types of plants need different nutritional content. Even growing something as simple as grass requires specific soil acidity levels and fertilizers.

In this article, we will cover why growing cannabis in regular soil is not ideal, what the best type of soil really is, and tips for getting the best grow.

Why Regular Soil Is Not Ideal for Growing Marijuana?

When starting a traditional garden, many gardeners have to spend months enriching their soil. But even enriching soil is not always ideal for growing marijuana. If you have been to a garden center, you may have noticed that there are different blends of soil for things like succulents, flowers, vegetables, and fruits. Different types of plants need different levels of nutrients. Soils tend to differ in five major ways: drainage, nutrients, texture, pH level, and water retention.

What is the Best Soil for Cannabis?

There are dozens upon dozens of different brands of soil. What you will need to look for is soil that has the right blend of attributes for your marijuana plants. Here is what you need to know:

  • Drainage. Some plants will rot readily if their roots are allowed to remain moist. High drainage soils are frequently used for plants such as succulents, in order to make sure that their roots dry out quickly. The addition of things like “perlite” improve drainage. Cannabis does not need high drainage. Moderate to low drainage is fine.
  • Water retention. This controls how long water will be retained in the soil. If you have soil with low water retention, you will need to water your plants more frequently. Cannabis plants like water, which means you want soil with high water retention. Soils that include peat moss are a good choice, as this keeps the soil moist.
  • Nutrients. If you are growing cannabis, it is very likely that you are going to be adding a nutrient base of fertilizer to your soil regardless. That means that in terms of nutrients, you really just want a high quality, general purpose soil. Many prefer organic soils, to ensure that the cannabis that they receive will be organic. Organic soils do not have added chemicals that could be harmful.
  • Texture. The texture of your soil can range from a coarse soil to a very silt-like soil. In reality, this does not matter so much for cannabis: you can choose a soil texture that makes the most sense in your setup. If you are growing in pots, you may want a potting soil that holds together better. If you are planting outside in raised garden beds, you may want a heavier, more clay-filled soil. pH level. This is the acidity or basicness of the soil. Cannabis tends to prefer its environment to be slightly acidic. In general, the best soil for cannabis is going to be between 6 to 6.8 pH.

These are all the attributes of the soil itself. You can alter these attributes through the use of fertilizers. For instance, frequently you may add nutrients such as nitrogen to the soil through a fertilizer. Because of this, getting the right blend for your marijuana plants is actually a bit complex. You may need to fine-tune your soil and fertilizer combination over time, and if there are any issues you see in your plants (such as wilting) they may be directly related to soil, drainage, light, or any other number of factors. Consider taking the guesswork out of having to mix fertilizers or nutrients by utilizing a fully amended living soil, such as SoHum Living Soil®.

Tips for Growing in Higher Quality Soil

Contact us today, and you will be on your way to high-quality marijuana plants.

Why Cannabis Soil Is a Top Choice for the Home Grower

cannabis soil
For large scale dispensary operations and cannabis facility design, the decision to grow with soil or hydroponics is based on many factors. But as cannabis laws and regulations continue to expand ways in which people can legally grow, consume and sell marijuana, home growing operations are becoming more popular than ever. While the average home grower does not need to worry about cannabis licensing and cannabis marketing, they do need to carefully consider what growing medium to use.
 

Three Immediate Advantages to Choosing Soil for the New Grower

 
The choice boils down to hydroponics, aeroponics, and soil. While people tend to picture plants grown in water when they hear hydroponics or aeroponics, that actually refers to plants grown in any medium other than soil, including sand and gravel. So while all operations based in soil growing will have some very marked similarities, there is an extremely wide range of hydroponic systems, each with their own set of factors and concerns.
 
For instance, while all soil growing operations require a grower to take care that their plants are receiving the right amount of water, a grower using a water hydroponic system does not have to worry about watering plants, while someone using a sand hydroponic system must take that into account. And that is one of the big advantages of choosing soil: because soil growing operations are all fundamentally similar, especially when broken down to indoor/outdoor and container and planted in the ground, there are more resources for the soil grower, especially when it comes to initial set-up and troubleshooting, than there are for hydroponics. It is very easy to find a guide for a soil set-up that will meet a home grower’s specific needs and variables, whereas hydroponic systems tend to more unique, as well as expensive.
 
And while the concept of using hydroponics to grow plants is hardly new; it has been going at least as far back as the time of the Aztecs, for the average home grower, it remains a novel concept. For the person who is just getting started growing cannabis, hoping to apply their previous gardening experience to cultivating marijuana, soil is the clear choice because home gardening experience does carry over.
 
A final advantage involving initial set-up is the cost, and almost always, the initial set up cost is less for soil than it is for hydroponics or aeroponics.
 

So in terms of getting started, soil has some very clear advantages:

  • It is easier to find helpful resources to help set up and troubleshoot.
  • Previous home gardening experience carries over.
  • Initial set up costs are lower.
 

The Cons of Choosing Soil

 
With all of these advantages to initially choosing soil, you may wonder why hydroponics remains such a popular choice for marijuana cultivation. For a home grower looking to maximize yield above all else, then hydroponics might be the right choice, but for many home growers, quality is valued much more over quantity, so the ability to cultivate the ‘right’ plant, is more important than having the fastest or largest harvest. Many a soil grower believes that soil-grown cannabis produces a better taste than hydroponics.
 
There are a couple of other important advantages to growing hydroponically. Pests that can damage a crop tend to live in the soil, so removing that also removes the threat of pests. The soil grower, especially the outdoor soil grower, must be vigilant and take measures to prevent any infestation of possible pests. For a container grower, switching the soil between every planting cycle will go a long way towards eliminating the threat of pests, and has the added advantage of being able to guarantee the grower is able to get the precise mix of nutrients and fertilizer that they want, every time.
 
Finally, there are those hydroponic growers who believe that their set-ups are the lowest maintenance operations. The lowest maintenance operation is always the one that each individual grower has perfected and best fits their own needs and goals, and for some, this is a hydroponic set-up, but it takes a large investment of both time and money to create a low-maintenance hydroponic growth operation.
 

So while soil is an excellent choice for the home grower there are some advantages to hydroponics:

  • Hydroponically grown cannabis may grow faster.
  • Hydroponic harvests tend to yield more.
  • Hydroponic plants can be susceptible to pests.
  • Some well-established hydroponic set-ups are very low-maintenance.
 

 

The Long-Term Advantages of Choosing Soil:

 
There are several long-term advantages to choosing soil that has nothing to do with the experience level of the grower. One of the largest is the taste of the harvested plant. And while that is, of course, a subjective metric, many experts believe that the flavor of soil-grown is superior. Another similar characteristic where soil has the advantage is how much easier it is to do completely naturally or officially organic. Many hydroponic systems require chemicals to be added that are neither natural nor organic and whether it is due to the grower’s personal preference, or having an all-natural product is important for cannabis marketing, that can often be a deal breaker.
 
Another big long-term advantage is maintenance. While each hydroponic system will have its own level of maintenance, some of which are fairly complex, all soil systems have a pretty even level of maintenance, where the main components occur during planting and in the watering stages. On the whole, the level of maintenance required by a soil system tends to be simpler, more straightforward and more inexpensive than hydroponics. Overall soil systems tend to be slightly more forgiving to inattention on the part of the grower. While having the wrong PH or nutrient levels in a hydroponic system can spell disaster for an entire crop if not quickly corrected, with a soil system, it’s more likely to be salvageable even if not corrected right away. The flip side of this is that problems can be slower to emerge and treat, but for hobbyist growers, for whom this is not a full-time job, having an operation that allows them to forget checking nutrient levels every so often is a worthwhile trade-off.
 
Whereas the choice to go with hydroponics or soil is an important one to every cannabis grower, when it comes to the home grower, especially the home grower who is just getting started cultivating cannabis, soil has some very marked advantages. Contact us today for more information!